Gradius' Story,A Tail of Love & Adventure
by Grand pikachao
Summary: This is my second (good?) fanfiction(as you can see, my titling skills havnt improved much). Its a romance between Renamon and an orginal character based on myself(not a word). Please read and reivew, and most of all, enjoy my second endeavor..
1. Chapter 1

Well, its me again...Howdy. you might know me from the Krystal Kronicls..If you dont...Uh...Thats fine too. In case you dont know, iv been suffering from an infatuation with...a six foot fox named Renamon. NO LAUGHING! ILL CHOP YOUR PRIVATES OFF! ...Yeah...Anyway, this is my story. I hope you like it...Its told in first- person view  
  
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Prolouge: Meet the Hero  
  
Hello...Im the hero of this story, I suppose... I have a name, but Its too embarassing for me to say..You can call me CJ if you want, or maybe Gradius...Thats what SHE calls me. Im about five and a half feet tall, 15 years of age, with a sturdy build, blue eyes and long, wild, blond hair, weighing roughly 115 pounds. I'm a a lover AND a fighter, specializing in sword play. I like to wear deep blue jeans, with one leg cut off at the knee, a blue shirt with a plaid, green overshirt, which is unbuttoned and hangs like a vest, and a wooden amulet with a dragon burned in on one side and my zodiac sign on the other, hanging by a silver ring on a tough black cord. I have a hand made sword, which is also wooden, with symbols burned into the handle and a serpent, burned in also, going down the blade. Its about three feet long and a half foot wide. now that you know what I look like, we can get started...  
  
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Chapter 1: The beginning  
  
It started one day...I was walking home, having just been dropped off by the school bus on my last day of school. I walked up the dusty path to my home, wondering what I would do...I planned on getting lots of rest, maybe spending a few hours a day online...And I did. The first thing I did when I walked in the door was crash on the couch, and fall into a nice, deep sleep....Some time near 8pm, I got up, and fiddled round on the computer for a while...Like..Til 6 in the morning. I went to a search engine, having a sudden urge. typed in..."R-e-n-a-m-o-n". I smiled softly as my screen was flooded with pictures of the familiar figure. I gazed at them, half-lost in thought, until I heard my parents stirring in the other room. I decided it was time to pack up and get some sleep...I rather enjoy sleep, you see. So I turned off the moniter, and somehow managed to make it to my bed...I went to sleep  
  
I woke up only 2 hours later...After cursing myself for getting up so early, I turned over, burying myself back into my blanket...I sat like that for about half an hour before I realised that i wasnt going to get anymore sleep... It seemed very annoying at the time, and I thought breifly that it was going to be a bad day...But that was before I knew just what awaited me when I got up. I walked into the living room, stuck my sword in its scabberd, and, since I needed to get myself movng for the day ahead, I walked outside to go for a quick bike ride. I pulled my red bike out of the shed. it was a pretty old bike, but it was realiable. It was one of those kinds with different speeds. I set it to 6, hopped on, and started pumping. It was hard going, because I was riding up hill on grass, and the thing was set to 6, but once I got going, I was fine. I rode around a bit, half enjoying and half hating how my legs seemed to turn to iron. It was kind of a nice feeling, but it made me feel clumsy, heavy...  
  
I was about to turn back, so I looked down to turn, when BOOM...I hit fog. But this wasnt normal fog..This stuff was thick... I turned myself around, and got out of it. Upon looking back, I found out that it seemed to be a wall...It just seemed to stop far to suddenly to be just a foggy patch in the yard, and it wasnt moving...It was just...Sitting there. This couldn't be natural...So being a human, I investigated. I got off my bike, letting it thud to the ground and walked up to the fog again...I stuck my hands in, then pulled it back out. Then I realised something very peculiar...My hand was dry. Fog was made of water last time I checked, so shouldnt it be at least a little moist? I was of the firm opionion that something was screwy around here...Throwing caution to the wind, I charged in, but quickly discovered that I couldnt see a blasted thing. I ran forward blindly, when I heard something. It was...Frankly one of the creepiest things Iv ever heard. A voice. A deep, evil voice....I felt the hairs on the back of my neck stand up, and not being particularly bright, I ignored notions of running away, and kneeled down to listen...  
  
"Well..You put up a good fight, but it looks like Iv won. Now the question is...Should I destroy you now?...Or maybe Ill bring you back to my lair for a little fun...If you beg, I might even let you live after that...Ill even let you choose. Grunt if you want the second option"  
  
..No answer...I didnt blame whoever he was talking to...But just for the record, this guy was pissing me off...I stood up, and rolled up my sleaves to dispense some justice. I started to slowly walk forward...but it was hard, because for all I knew, I had allready walked past the guy.  
  
"Maybe you need help deciding" I heard a blow land...The bastard...He was gonne get a serious ass kicking when I found him "Your no fun...Hmph..." I heard another blow land, then grass crinkling..Like someone, or something was being dragged... I was getting closer, I just knew it..."I hate your type...Your strong to the last minute, arent you?...Fine. if you want destruction, then Im more then happy...To indulge you"  
  
I can only guess..That this creep had thrown his target..Because at that moment, something big and warm crashed into me. I tried my best to catch the large bundle that hit me, but it was too big...I fell over, grunting as I hit the ground. I scrambled to push it off me...I heard a small moan escape it...A female moan...She must have been wearing a fur coat, too, because..Well...I felt fur. I stood to face whoever was tormenting the poor women. I saw a shadow, but I couldnt discern what it was..it looked too big to be a human...I popped my knuckles and shouted at him...  
  
"Hey, asshole...If you want to pick on someone, try me on for size..Im armed, I warn you" I put out my arm like I was aiming a gun...I wanted to stall as long as possible, because I didnt know if I could fight this guy. Maybe if I held out long enough, someone would notice and call the police or something...  
  
"Oh? A little boy has come to your rescue...Put that arm down, boy, your not fooling anyone" Damn..This guy must of had sharp eyes...Of all the creeps in the world to fight, I had to get the one freak with 20-20 vision...  
  
"So, youv got good eyes...Allright, well settle it like men..." *I crouched down slightly, brings my fists up...  
  
My opponent seemed to spread his arms "Come, then...Ill kill you too"  
  
I didnt like this guys atttitude, so I rushed him. I jumped, intent on giving his face a punch it would never forget...I felt my fist crash itno him...And yelled as my fingers were nearly broken on it. I felt two cold claws clamp down on me on either side. Then a nighmare came into view. The "man" had stuck his face close to mine, and for the first time I saw him..And regretted it. He was NOT human. He grinned as my eyes widened and my mouth tried to open...I wanted to scream. I wanted to let the whole world know that I was scared beyond reason of this thing that had me in its grip...But I couldnt even do that. I was frozen.  
  
For starters, his skin was an unnatural light blue...He looked dead..but I could only wish. He wore a weird red mask, that stretched back into bat wings...but that wasnt the scary part...His lips were parted, pulled back in a cruel grin, revealing big, nasty teeth. Obviously a vampire. I wondered breifly if he was going to drain my blood, or just rip me apart...I decided quickly that neither of these options appealed to me, and started to struggle for everything I was worth. I kicked, and yelled, shoved my skull into his face, bit, and once even had the crazy idea of throwing my hair in his eyes. I succeeded in getting one arm free, and used my one hand to reach behind me and yank out my sword.  
  
He was a vampire, and I had a sharp peice of wood...A good start. I threw all my hope into this one stab...I shoved it forward into his chest with everything I had. Through some miracle, it managed to penetrate. He looked down at the sword sticking out of him, and yelled...Loud. His breath stank, too, but that wasnt my main concern... he threw e aside, and started t reach up for the handle of my blade to yank the thing out...Yay for me, I had managed to piss him off. If he got that sword out of himself I was finished...SO I ran forward, and jumped, brings my foot up and bracing my leg..I kicked the hilt of my blade, sending the whole thing into him, down to the crosspeice. He caught me a rough bow to the head, as he looked down in horror..My sword had started shining...I couldnt explain this, and didnt care to try. He was still alive, and he was coming towards me. I tried to get away, but tripped, falling flat on my back. Before I could even get up, i felt his foot slam down on my chest, and I saw his shadow raise its arm to stirke...I closed my eyes for the last blow, which would more then likely tear me in half. When I heard a familiar voice ring out...  
  
"d...DIAMOND STORM!" The lady shouted...  
  
~Diamond what?~ Flashed through my head once, before I managed to shove aside my panic and think ~Diamond storm was Renamons signature attack~...I remembered from the events years ago...but..The digimon had all left...And a firewall was put up...Right?...But whatever the girl was doing, it caught my assailants attention. He looked up, his attack forgotten, and threw his arms up, as I saw severel small objects smash into him, and he fell over...But then his shadow just...Dissappeared...Then it all clicked. That thing was a digimon...The "women" was a Renamon, and somehow they had come through together...I got up, and picked up my sword...It had fallen over, not having anything to stick into. Suddenly, the fog started to clear. I looked around wildly for the fox who had saved my life...I found her. She was on her back, and i could see even from that distance that she was badly injured...I put my sword away, and rushed over to her...I guessed that she didnt have the strength to absorb the things data...I took off my overshirt, and wrapped it around her,mustering myself and somehow picking her up. Hopefully, I would have the energy to take her to my house...I started walking...  
  
I managed it...I kicked open the door, stumbling in. No one was up yet, strangely...I took the Renamon into my room, and stuck her in my bed...I wearily climbed in too, carefully covering her up, then starting to get up to get myself one, too...But I was tired...I looked at her...She was unconcious. I was sure she wouldnt mind if I just durld up under the same one...So I layed back down, raised one side of it, and slid under. I relaxed, my eyes half open... I looked at her for a while...I plucked up my courage, raising a shaking hand. I rested it softly on the side of her head, rubbing softly. She shifted, making me dart my hand back, until I saw that she was smiling slightly. I put my hand back, smiling myself, and drifted off...Maybe this day was allright..Time would tell... 


	2. Chapter 2

Feedback Feedback  
  
RayD: First review =) PARTY..Youll find out the details later..i couldnt just give out the whole plot on the first chatper, could I? Im glad you enjoyed it otherwise..  
  
Subaru + Tsukasa Forever: Well, ok..I will=) Im glad you enjoyed my story..And Im sorry for the gramer and spelling..Im a lousy typist XD Durld: (Verb) A word in the anciant language of Typo. Means "Curled" in English Oh yeah and..YAY! FIRST review from someone I dont know, PARTY *gets out a BBQ and soda cooler*  
  
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Chapter 2:  
  
I woke up after a good nap. I didn't know what time it was, or how long I had been out, but I guessed it had been awhile since I was pretty tired..And my stomach was grumbling. The first thing I noticed was that Renamon was gone from her spot..The second thing I noticed was that she was sitting on my chest, legs crossed indian style, examining me calmly and carefully...My overshirt was crumpled up next to me, and she had fresh bandages on her. I guess she'd patched herself up...But I wasnt thinking about that just then.  
  
"Hey! Your up" I said, smiling widely "I was worried...You must have had a pretty tough fight with that..Whatever it was. I can only assume it was a digimon"  
  
"A Myotismon...A Virus, vampire digimon.Its attacks are Grisly Wing, Crimson Lightning and Nightmare"  
  
"Right...I KNEW it was a vampire. I wonder why it didnt use any of those attacks on me..."  
  
"Maybe it didnt think you were enough of a threat...Or maybe he wanted enough to be left to drain blood from" She smiled slightly as I gulped, before continuing "But that is in the past...This is the present."  
  
"I couldnt agree more...I would be stupid not too" I laughed..Before realising she wasnt laughing with me...It suddenly clicked "Oh...I suppose your wondering why my hand was....."  
  
She nodded slowly  
  
"Uh...Sorry about that...I couldnt help myself"..Could she blink!?! "I uh..." I was interupted as she lifted her paw, placing it on my head and rubbing slightly.  
  
"Hm..."  
  
I laughed as she closed her eyes, and mocked a careful judging...It felt good., I couldnt deny it...but I tried not to let it show TOO much..Key word is TRIED...I failed miserably. I closed my eyes and enjoyed itvisably..To the point of sighing quietly. I barely stopped myself from protesting when the paw was removed, and opened my eyes to find her looking at me kinda funny...I realised how weird I must have looked and suddenly got very uncomfortable. She seemed to notice, thank goodness, and changed the subject instead of pressing it...  
  
"So what is your name?"  
  
I hit a snag...I REALLY would rather she not know my name..But lying is never a good way to srtart a fiendshp....Or more...SO i settled on something that wasnt a lie, but wasnt an answer, either...  
  
"Uh..I dont like my name..."  
  
"..Allright...Then what would you like to be called?"  
  
"Uh..." I drew a blank...I looked around for something....I spotted a card on the floor..A yugioh card (I like monsters, what can I say?) ..Gradius...It was a weak card, but I liked to have it around because I had its equip card, a big cannon that ignored defense...But this isnt a story about my many lost duals, its about Renamon, so Ill get back on track..."Gradius..Call me Gradius..."  
  
She smiled slightly "Allright, Gradius..."  
  
"...Do you have a name?"  
  
She seemed caught off guard "...Iv...Never been asked that before...I..Dont believe I have one"  
  
"Really?...Well...Uh..hm" I thought...No jokes, allright?..And had a brilliant idea "Ill just call you Rena, then...Is that allright with you?" Ok, so it wasnt brilliant...But this is my story, ok?  
  
"...I dont see why not..."  
  
"Well good..Rena, I officially invite you to stay with me for as long as you like" Pleased with my quick thinking, I...I listened to my stomach let loose a growl that embarrassed me badly..."heh..Um...Rena, would you like something to eat?"  
  
She looked thoughtful. I guess she allready knew enough about me that Id rather she not mention the growl... "I suppose I could use a bite to eat..."  
  
"Well ok, then" I smiled widely "What would you like? Sorry, but Iv never entertained a six foot fox before..."  
  
"Anything is fine with me.."  
  
"Right...Uh..Not that I dont enjoy the attenton but..Youll need to get off for me to make anything.."  
  
She smiled again...Man I loved that smile...And moved.I shifted to get up, and felt something dig into my back..I moved my hand back to the pain, and found it resting on a strange device...It looked..Familiar...But I couldnt be bothered with it right now...I shoved it in my pocket and got up. I stood up, and walked out of my room, Rena close on my heels. Luckily, no one was home yet...I didnt feel like explaining this to anyone yet. I was hit with an after-thought...  
  
"Oh..Rena?"  
  
"Yes?"  
  
"..The bathroom is right there..If you feel like freshening up, feel free..."  
  
"..Maybe thats a good idea...Thank you for asking"  
  
I flashed a smile as winning as I knew how, and she slipped into the bathroom, closing and locking the door...And I let out the air I had been holding...Certain excitements had to be held back with her just being there...It wouldnt do to imagine her wet and soapy..BAD Human...I had just MET her and I was allready letting my animal side take over...I punched myself in the forehead for good measure, feeling the dizziness rush me back to reality...I heard the shower turn on, and, after shivering slightly, walked to the kitchen to make breakfast...I opened my refridgerator...I yanked out everything that looked good...Ham...Eggs..Cheese...Milk...Apple juice...Waffles...Hmm...Nope, thats all. I kicked the refrigerator shut, arms laden, and started up..  
  
I got out two plates, two forks, and two glasses..I put them quickly on the table, then ran by the small pile of food I had left...I grabbed two waffles, turning on the stove as i went by, and plopped them both into the toaster..I opened the bread drawer...Bread! Toast would be good, too..So I put two peices of break in.The stove was nice and ot now, so I put down a frying pan...By the way, and laughing at the fact that Im cooking will be greeted with a hot frying pan to the head...Anyway...I dropped the ham in, grabbing a spatula, and let it cook. I flipped it over after a few minutes, and the waffles and toast sprang up, my hyper-active toaster, as always, firing the toast a good deal farther then it should have. It landed with a thud on the counter..I scooped both pieces onto a plate, then started two more..At the same time, the waffles sprang..Thankfully, they were to heavy to fly, so I retrieved them without incident, and stuck two more peices of bread in...Iv been known to eat entire loaves of bread by toasting the slices one by one...But I didnt have TIME for that. I ran to the fridge, yanked out a bottle of "I Cant believe its not butter"...I can totally believe its not butter..Its to tasty and managable to be butter...  
  
Making breakfast is a two paragraph event...I sprayed the butter on the toast, and shoved both pieces on the plate. The ham was done, so I took it off, replacing it with four eggs, beat into one mess with a little milk. I let that go, and ran to get the four new toast(S?) that sprang up, buttering them, then putting four more in. With the speed and dexterity of a rock, I flipped the mess of an egg over, thanking the powers that be that i got it right for once, and dropped the ham onto it, then sprinkled (dumped...) The cheese on that, and let that go until it melted..Then I, sprinkled salt and pepper, and folded it in half, creating..An Omelette! no applause neccassary...I cut the omelette in half, then grabbed the last few peices of toast in mid-air, buttered them with a vengeance, and put an omelette, a waffle, and a fork each on the plates, rushing it to the table, as I heard the shower turn off, then dashed back to pile all the toast onto a third plate, and sat down..I looked up and saw an old, golden candle on the mantlepeice...And thought, as I think this alot, "What the hell?" I put the candle between the two plates, and lit it with a handy lighter. I then realised that I had left the beverages behind, and still ahd to clean up the packaging from the food..With lightning speed and profiency, I grabbed up the egg and ham packaging, and the "butter", and shoved them unceremoniously tino the refridgerator. Then I grabbed the milk, juice, and cups, bringing them with me, sat them down on the table, and sank into my chair, tired and sweaty as the door opened..SUCCESS! Rena walked into the dining room, looking refreshed and happy, with new bandages...  
  
Before, Rena glowed..Now she shined...I then realised that I was in need of one, too...I got up, and ran past the surprised-looking Rena, giving a small pat as I went, and rushed into the bathroom. I showered faster then I ever have before. I thought I made a sonic boomI didnt pay much attention to detail...I dried off with a towel, and threw it over the one I suppose Rena had used, and nearly ran out without my clothes...I stuck everything on, and rushed for everything I was worth to the table, sitting down and breathing out heavily, sinking in, brushing aside a stray hair, and letting my legs stretch out.  
  
"Thanks for waiting..." I managed...  
  
"Of course...You made it..And I thought you would need help" She smiled at me again, and my heart nearly stopped...  
  
"Oh yeah...Uh theres fruit in this basket here, if you want some..."  
  
"Good...I didnt want to ask..You looked so tired"  
  
"Dont worry about me..Im a trooper..." I tried to put on a cool face, but a massive yawn killed the whole attempt...We talked as we ate...And believe me, being able to call us a we is almost more then i can take...  
  
"So..How did you get here, anyway? Didnt they put up a firewall?"  
  
"..Im not sure..I heard that Myotismon talking about a hole that was made by something....I followed them through to stop them."  
  
"Them?"  
  
"Yes...Myotismon isn't that strong, really...but he had lots of friends...Mummymon, lots of Devimon..More Bakemon then I can count..I took them all out fairly easily, but by that time, I as pretty tired...And transferring to the real world drained me even more...I kept fighting, but he kept moving around, in and out of the mist...He waited until I had used up my energy to start attacking...Then all I could do was dodge..And after a while, I could only block, and then I couldnt do anything...I thought I was done for until you showed up..Though I wish you could have taken him out without me.."  
  
I frowned slightly..She had to remind me..."I tried...Which reminds me! My sword did something funny while I was fighting him..it sorta..glowed"  
  
I took it out, tracing the familiar designs I had put into it myself...When I noticed something ~Wait...I didnt make THIS one~ It was an odd crest of some sort...It looked like a sun...And it seemed to be glowing slightly..I traced it with my finger..It was warm to the touch, and when I finished tracing it, it glowed vbrightly for a moment..And I felt for a moment like nothing could stop me...I shivered as the feeling wound down...I slipped out of conciousness, falling right out of my chair...Darkness consumed me before I could hit the ground  
  
..I had a nightmare...Rena..Poor Rena was chained up...In some dreary dungeon...There was no color, though......Water dripped from the ceiling, down onto her head, down her vulpine face, and off the tip of her nose, dipping to the floor...but there was no sound...I ran forward, and tried to grab the chains,ready to tear them up with my bare hands if need be...But my hand went right through them. I jumped back, startled, and put my hand slowly forward again, this time to her...Again, my hand slipped right through..I felt like a ghost. Then a door clattered open, and a shadowy figure made its way into the chamber. The hairs on the back of my neck stood up...I knew this wasnt good...The figure walked slowly forward. It lifted Renas head, as if looking at a trophy..I instantly didnt like this guy, so I attacked, forgetting my ghost-like state, and crashes right through him, into Rena..And through her, too. I rushed back through the wall, half wanting to be there and half wanting to run.... The thing had put one grisly claw over his head...I was furious..I yelled and cursed, and threatened, but I couldnt even hear myself..But then, the entire room began to waver in and out...Like a TV screen trying to correct itself... Little traces of sound peirced..Then it all snapped into place. the color, the sound, everything...Rena looked up in shock and the figure turned around..I reared back, wanting nothing more then to smash it, but it just stopped me...It clawed at me with the other, the claw seeming to come in slow motion. I closed my eyes.... Then it just..Stopped. Like the film broke...I heard a voice..Or maybe it was several voices.....  
  
"Dont loose your courage..Youll need every ounce you can get!"  
  
Then I woke up, in the arms of a very worried Rena. I grabbed her chest fur like a maniac, pulling her close and hugging her tightly. I shivered and whimpered....So much for keeping courage...I shook myself out of it... I took a deep breath and released my death grip. Rena looked at me, seeming concerned...I was overcome by a burst of emotion, and I hugged her close again. I closed my eyes an buried my face in her shoulder, breathing her scent deeply. She had a mild, spicy scent...In the midst of this outburst, I felt her slowly and hesitatantly put her own paws on my back and squeeze me. I appreciated it greatly...We just sat there for a while...And sometime during this, we fell asleep... ~~~~~~~~~~  
  
....Sorry...had a sudden burst of romantics x_x  
  
Anyway, hope you liked the second chapter..Gnight 


	3. Chapter 3

Sorry about my absents, I had things to take care of... ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Feedback feedback RayD: Ill check that out if I get a spare moment...  
  
DVF: Well shoot, I thought Depth was my STRONG point . I shall try =/  
  
Kamahl: Stephen, quit stalking me v_v By the way, thats story you said I should read isnt in the right place, and doesnt have the right title...You might wanna fix that  
  
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Chapter Three: A Chilling Revelation  
  
I was shaken rudely from my sleep by a blood curdling scream. I rubbed my eyes and looked around, looking for the source...I saw my little brother standing in the doorway, eyes wide as saucers, mouth agape, and my mother standing to the side of him, calmly evaluating the situation. A few grocery bags we're off to the side.I felt Rena stirring, and looked up at her face as her eyes snapped open, instantly alert. My mother spoke up, whispering through her teeth  
  
"....Look around slowly, and dont make a sound"  
  
I spoke up myself "Mom, dont worry..This is Rena...Shes perfectly friendly"  
  
She seemed very relieved "Oh...Son, next time you have a new...Friend, TELL me before he...She..."  
  
"She" I said, before mom could use the dreaded "It"  
  
"She comes over.."  
  
"Well its not like I planned this...Your not gonna believe this, but a digital feild popped up in our backyard...This is half of what came out"  
  
"And the other half?"  
  
"Deleted by yours truly..." Rena eyed me, so I quickly added "Sorta..."  
  
My mother didnt seem at all disturbed by the fact that a Digimon had once again come into our world...She smiled jovially "Well if shes going to stay for dinner, tell me so I know how much to make..." Yup, thats my mom...An army bursting through the front door woudnt faze her, she would just offer them tea...  
  
"Im not sure how long shes going to stay..."  
  
"Renamon? How long are you planning on staying?"  
  
I looked up hopefully...Rena looked thoughtful, then looked down at me, and I gave her my best puppy eyes. She smiled warmly, then put one of her large paws on each of my shoulders  
  
"Gradius saved me..He seems to want me to stay..."  
  
~damn straight!~  
  
"So I suppose I wouldnt mind..."  
  
~Well, Id like it if she were a BIT more gung-ho about it, but not minding is fine...~  
  
My mom laughed "Well be careful..He grows on you...Come on, Jordan, help me get the rest of these groceries..." She started to bustle about, putting things away, cooking things, various mom stuff...Rena walked to my bedroom with me in tow.  
  
"You can have my bed. I dont mind sleeping on the floor" I said  
  
She didnt say anything..She just nodded.  
  
"I guess we just kick around here for a bit until suppers ready"  
  
She simply nodded again...She seemed to be studying me.  
  
"Whats wrong? Is there something on my face?"  
  
She shaked her head quickly "N..No. You remind me of someone..."  
  
"Oh...Er..Who would that be?"  
  
She looked uncomfortable...I decided not to press the issue  
  
"Dont worry about it....I dont wanna pry"  
  
"Thank you...."  
  
~~~~~~~~~~  
Rena stayed with me for a year...I thought she was going to leave after a few days, but for some reason she stuck around. We seemed to be getting closer, and she seemed to enjoy the calm life. Not to mention my moms cooking. Maybe it was because she didnt know HOW to get home, or she didnt want to... But my sixth sense told me that there was something I didnt know...There was something deeper then this, keeping her around.....I guess it didnt really matter, if it was something I had any business knowing, she would tell me...It was the one year aniversery of her arrival. I had decided to do something special...Little did I know, something outside of my knowledge had something "Special" planned, too.............. ~~~~~~~~~~  
  
I woke up early, and checked to see that Rena was asleep. She was. I immediatly began plotting. I snuck into my kitchen, where my mom was waiting. "Allright.." I said covertly "You know the plan, but Ill give it one more run through for good measure"  
  
Mom gave me a look "yes, Commodore..."  
  
"Quiet you" I said playfully "Ill distract Rena by making up some junk about a digital field and asking her to help me with it...While Im doing that, Id like you to bake a cake. A big angel food one, with strawberries! Mission clear?"  
  
She had been patiantly waiting.." Yes, I get it. Its not that difficult really"  
  
"Allright! Ill go get Rena.." I walked toward my room, to find that Rena was just waking up. I acted excited...  
  
"Rena! I just heard on the news that a "Dense bank of fog" Has appeared in town!"  
  
She looked urgent "Where? I cant sense it" She looked around with her eyes closed  
  
"Uh...It must be...A...Atmospheric conditions. Lets hurry!"  
  
I started to go out the door, only to feel a very strong claw pick mer up by the coller. I was placed on a furry, muscular back and seemed to be gong very quickly through my front yard. Rena jumped with me, and suddenly everything went dark...I couldnt hear anything, feel anything, see anything...I was floating in an endless void, Rena didnt seem to be there either. This feeling lasted for a split second, and suddenly everything snapped back into place. We were in town now, and Rena was there again. I hugged her a bit, shivering slightly. Considering everything was gone for a few seconds, I think I took it pretty well. Rena looked at me apologetically, still bounding through the town.  
  
"Sorry, Gradius...I forgot to tell you about teleportation"  
  
"D..Dont worry, Im ok..." I took a deep breath and calmed myself "Lets find that fog now...Ill search the north. "  
  
She stopped, and I jumped off with a thud. I nodded and started to leave, but she stopped me. She smiled and offered me my sword.  
  
"Allright! Thanks Rena" I took it and put it in its scabbard. I ran off to the north, looking back to see that she was allready gone. I ducked into the first shop I found and sat down. I took a deep breath, and waited a bit...Then, to make it realistic, I took my own sword and cut my arms up a bit. nothing big, just a few on the tops. I cleaned the blood off and put it away again. I was caughyt off guard with how fast Rena arrived. I quickly acted winded.  
  
"Gradiius, are you allright? I...I felt your injury. What was it?" She seemed concerned...Wait..Did she say she felt it? ...I felt good and bad at the same time.  
  
"Er..It was just a stupid Goburimon...It got a cheap shot in, but I wiped it out"  
  
"Allright..Im just glad your ok" I smiled. Inside and outside. The cake should have been done by then, so I acted tired  
  
"That should be it..How bout we head home?"  
  
She nodded and scooped me up.and then we were ripping home again. The house was dark, as planned. I opened the door and went in, looking around. I smelled the cake. I assumed that Rena would, too..She did. She sniffed the hair, looking hungry  
  
"Something smells good..." She looked around hungrily  
  
"I dunno.." I acted lost...  
  
"Gradius...You cant fool me, remember?"  
  
*gulp* "Fool you? Why would I do that..." I laughed nervously  
  
"Because you have been slowly falling in love with me since we met"  
  
I was noticably shocked...  
  
She leaned down a little and gave me a small lick "Thank you for caring..." She smiled softly "Ill act surprised"  
  
I smiled and gave her a small hug "Thanks..."  
  
We walked in together, and she was a good sport and acted surprised. We hung around and listened to music and ate cake. We had lots of fun, just being near each other...It got late, and we were the only ones awake...Rena looked like she was thinking as we retired to my room. I had something on my mind, too....I voiced it.  
  
"Rena? ...Remember a year ago, when you said I reminded you of someone?...I keep thinking about that..."  
  
"..I suppose it would do no harm to tell you..." I listened closely "You remind me of my mate.."  
  
My eyes widened...I felt terrible! "Mate?? Why didnt you tell me?? I wouldnt have kept you here if Id known..."  
  
She put a paw to my mouth "No...Rokoujomon died a long time ago..."  
  
..."Wh..When..?" I had a strange feeling of dread...That I couldnt quite comprehend  
  
"16 years ago...I believe the date was"  
  
"August 23rd, 1988" We said at the same time...I was in some kind of trance...  
  
Rena started "How did you know that?!"  
  
"I..I dont know...But Rena" I looked down, as if searching for an explanation "August 23rd 1988...Is my birthdate" ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Preview  
  
Things have been peaceful so far, but in the next chapter, things heat up. I still dont know about this Rokoujomon. But I cant help but feel we have some osrt of connection...Maybe its just a coincidence. But I dont have time to worry about that now! The shit has hit the fan, and I have a big problem to solve.  
  
Chapter 4: Disruptions 


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4: Disruptions  
  
It started with a bang. Not just a bang, a huge, earshattering, ground shaking, deafening BAAANG. I was woken rudely, and tossed right out from under my sheet by it, rolling to a stop and groggily trying to figure out just what was going on. I got my answer in the form of a major shock. I couldnt see anything, but all the hairs on my body were standing up, and I could hear very heavy footsteps from outside my room...I prayed that my family was allright, and scrambled up. Rena was gone. I could only assume she was ok. I scrambled for my sword, and found it missing. Whatever this thing was, I would have to fight it bare handed. I didnt like how this was going. I stood to face whatever it was...  
  
What I ended up having to fight was something scary. It was much worse then stupid that Myotismon, any number of Devimon, or an eternity of Bakemon. Standing in front of me was Blackwargreymon. This is not a good thing. If youv ever seen one of them in action, then you know what was going through my mind then. I dont know how many ways there are to say "Im dead" But I think I covered most of them. If this thing attacked, it would rip through me like tissue paper. Any feeble attempts at defense on my part would be similiar to when grass thwaps against your leg when your running. I could only hope it wouldnt attack....I futily readied myself  
  
The creature did something that made my blood curdle..It didnt attack, it just smiled (As far as I could tell) And slowly raised its arm. Hanging from her tail, knocked out was Rena. My blood boiled and curdled at the same time. I threw caution to the wind and charged. It was stunned at my sudden attack, and I caught it in the face, not caring if my fist broke in two...But...When I hit, he was knocked down! I stared, stunned. There was no way a digimon of its level could be knocked down so easily...It got up, rubbing its jaw and spoke in a creepy voice  
  
"Who do you think you are?? Do you have any idea who I am?"  
  
I stared incredulously, unable to find words to describe what was going through my mind. Either I was a lot stronger then I thought, or...This was a fake!  
  
It talked again,as if hearing my thoughts..."Very quick, "Gradius"" Here he smirked "Your right, Im not what I look like...Allow me to OOF"  
  
I shut him up with another punch to the face. If I had dropped him so easily before, maybe I could really win this... He got back up, breathing heavily.  
  
"Your stronger then I thought.. But I never planned on killing you. Yet. Farewell, human!!" He turned to leave, Rena till in tow  
  
I wasnt planning on letting this guy get away...I grabbed him by the throat and slammed him to the ground "What do you want with Rena? Tell me or else!!" I raised my fist threateningly as he squirmed.  
  
"Shes very important to my boss...Shes a "missing piece", you might say. But thats all im telling!"  
  
"Oh yeah??" Was all I could think of, shaking my fist in his face. What an odd scene, a human holding down one of the most dangerous digimon in the world...  
  
"I dont have time to chat!" He muttered some kinda of chant, and scooped up some dust off the floor. It started to glow brightly and he threw it in my face. I was blinded. I flailed away, finding the thing gone completly. I meerly heard his mocking voice..  
  
"If you think you can do anything about it, come on into the digital world..Ill be watching you!"  
  
I regained my vision just in time to see him standing in front of my computer, chanting. The screen lit up and a hole appeared in it. It made a slight humming sound. He held up his hand to it, starting to change to another form, but before I could see what it was, he had disappeared into the vortex. I ran for the vortex, but felt a calm hand on my shoulder stop me. I looked back to see my big brother. He spoke with no emotion at all...  
  
"If you plan on going in there, then youd better take this..."  
  
He held out a huge backpack. I opened it up and found three days of traveling food,water, climbing gear, a first aid kit, an odd steel cube about 6 feet wide, various bandages and such, and a large, very real sword. Beside it was my own wooden one...I guess it was for good luck. There was also a shotgun and a small crossbow and some arrows. I looked up at him questioningly.  
  
" No time to explain" he said somberly, while moving me towards the rift "Now youd better go...Only use those shells if you absolutely have to. Once you get through, you may not be able to get any support from this world. Keep in mind, might..I might be able to do something after a while, so dont lose hope..Now, go"  
  
I tried to say something. Anything, even goodbye, but I was fading away..The "real" world sounded distorted and looked the same.I could vaguely make out my brother waving, and I was gone...I passed out and was no longer on Earth. I dont know how long I was out....But I came to violantly, flailing around and yelling, pushing the backpack off me like it was a poisonous snake. I looked around woozily.  
  
"Where am I?" I said painfully to no one in particular, rubbing my head.  
  
"Where do you think you are?" Said a voice  
  
I scrambled for the sword I was given...But it was too late. I felt something hard crash into my head and I was down again. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
Im really in a mess now...A minute into my big adventure, where Im supposed to be the hero Iv allready screwed up. A bunch of crazy overprotective digimon are holding me captive....Luckily, I seem to have at least one friend. but the clock is ticking! I have to get out of this and save Rena!!  
  
Chapter 5: Caught! 


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5: Caught! ~~~~~~~~~~  
  
I woke up woozily in a dank stone dungeon. The stone was a deep sort of green, obviously unkept because it was very cracked and lined with slime. Water was dripping from the ceiling onto my head. I looked up and got an eyefull of dirty water. I shook it out and looked around warily. There was a large wooden door, held to the stone with iron hinges. There were no windows of any kind, and I was hung up by my wrists and ankles by heavy iron manacles. I was also strapped to the wall by gilded bars across my chest and knees.. Luckily, the incredible pressure trying to pull my arms and legs from theyr sockets more then masked the chafing and the back pain. I couldnt move anything but my head. I looked up warily as the huge door swung open. A tough looking Gazimon entered.. If you dont know, Gazimon are bipedal rabbits. They typically have scruffy greyish blue fur and black apikey marks above and below theyr eyes, and long tails with leather wrapped around the end and a poof of fur. Theyr claws are quite long. This one was carrying a lunch tray, which contained a plate of crude bread, some questionable meat, and a shallow bowl of water. He pulled up a small stepladder and picked up some of the meat.  
  
"Here..Eat..You'll feel better" It said shortly.  
  
I tilted my head forward and pulled it into my mouth tiredly. It tasted like an old boot, except without the flavor and as if it was an old boot that had stepped in many things during its lifetime. Needless to say, it wasnt good...The only thing that stopped me from spitting it out was the screaming hunger. I also ate the bread when it was offered..It wasnt much better. It somehow managed to be stale, tough, and soggy at the same time. Next, it carefully tipped the bowl up, letting some undeniably filthy and stale water mostly make it through my parched lips. The rest splashed down and soaked my clothes. I felt a little better, though...Despite the bad taste in my mouth. I attempted to get some answers, not really expecting any...  
  
"Why am I here?" I asked breathlessly  
  
"My tribe doesnt trust humans....At all...Sorry"  
  
"So why are they feeding me?"  
  
"Technically...Im not supposed to be down here, let alone giving you food.They uh...Want you to die, actually."  
  
"....Why are you here then?"  
  
"Because..Iv never seen a human. And I wanna get to know you. I dont beleive the stories they tell of them..."  
  
"Like what?"  
  
"That theyr all just controlling maniacs that kill whatever they dont understand"  
  
I didnt have the heart to tell him how right they were..."Were not all like that"  
  
"Thats what I said, but the queen insisted..." He sighed heavily "Now its my turn to ask questions..Why are you here?"  
  
"Im here to save someone I love...But I dont seem to be doing well.."  
  
He looked me in the eye, dead serious.." Really?"  
  
" Of course!..Why would I lie about something like that?"  
  
"To save your skin"  
  
"You dont know me very well...I hate to ask, but could you help me get out of here?"  
  
He looked troubled....He looked abck up at me "Ill see what I can do..I cant promise much..."  
  
He left me there, taking the tray out with him. I hoped he could get me out...I wondered what he had in mind. There was no use dwelling on it now...I tried to sleep against the rough stone and uncomfortable chains...Finally, blackness overcame me and I difted off. I had a dream of my brother. He was sitting at a computer, typing away at a very long looking computer code...He seemed to be hacking something. Suddenly, he looked aound behind the chair he was at and gave a big grin....After that, I saw only blackness, like the tape had been ripped away. After what seemed like seconds of dark, I awoke to the sound of heavy fighting oustide my cell. I futiley turned my head, as if I could see through the stone..All i could tell was the there were flashing lights out the door, which I could see under the crack of it...Someone was doing some serious damage, because the wall was chipping in places. The door was kicked roughly open by the same Gazimon as before...  
  
"Come on, kid, move it!"  
  
"I cant, Im chained to the wall!"  
  
"Are you now? Static Force!"  
  
He let loose a shock. But it didnt LOOK like static. It looked like at least a million volter...He aimed it very precisely, because instead of the iron catching the voltage and electrovuting me, the wall it was held to was smashed. The manacles clanged uselessly to the floor. I dropped down in short order, rubbing cirulation back into my limbs. He tosses me my pack, too... Allright! He obviously knew what he was doing...  
  
"Thanks..."  
  
"Dont mention it" Was his hurried, slightly panic reply..  
  
I decided that whatever was worrying him, I should get away from it...I picked up my pack, took out the iron sword, and strapped it to my back. I started for the door, but felt long claws go through my coller and yank me back just in time for two beams of electricity to miss me. The tiny hairs on my arm stoof up and two Gazimon burst through the door. They didnt look near as strong as the one that was with me, so I didnt worry too much. I took one by surprise, beating it to the head with the flat of the heavy blade. The Gazimon that was with me took out the other with a quick boot to the chest. We made tracks out the door, him in the lead. We went through a twisting maze of corridors, all of the same stone until we finally got to a slightly better kept section. The stone was clean and grey, and much more evenly built. Then it got rough. Gazimon were practically throwing themselves at us now...One particularly large group had to be zapped out of the way. We were just a few yards away from a large drawbridge...When the floor started shaking.  
  
"Whats that?" I asked nervously  
  
"Thats... the queen.." He said with a pained expression.  
  
"Queen??"  
  
"You better lower the drawbridge..Ill hold her off"  
  
I ran to the heavy wooden bridge and looked for the way to activate it...It wasnt going well. I couldnt find any mechanisms of any kind. No pullleys, levers, buttons, nobs, switches, or anything...I looked back to my guide for help....He was busy. He was fighitng what had caused the floor to shake. I behled, in utter disgust, the fattest, ugliest Gazimon yet. She must have weighed a ton. And did I mention ugly? Her fur was freyed in some places, and there was a small trail of drool running down on side of her chin, and a trail of meat juice going down the other side. I frankly couldnt tell how she managed to move. Even her tail was fat. She elled in a voice that sounded like nails on a chalk board while a cat sat on an oven...  
  
"Why are you lettting him escape?! Dont you see he just wants to enslave us all??"  
  
He was obviously trying to reason with her, while avoiding the heavy, clumsy fists she was swinging around. "He is trying no such thing! If youd just give him a chance-"  
  
"Why would I do that? Im the Queen! You do what I say or else!!Now apprehend that human before he figures out where the control pad is!"  
  
Luckily, she was stupid too...I immediatly started rubbing my hand aong the wall around the exit. I couldnt feel anything softer then stone...I resorted to knocking on it. Success! I found a hollow spot, and started to tug at the seam of it. I had no luck..I gave up and banged my head on the top of the hollow brick. To my surprise, the stone swung down on a hidden hinge, dangling down. I turned around in triumph to tell the Gazimon we could get outta here. Severel things happened at once..I heard a sound that was like a squeak..What I saw was amazing. The Gazimon I was escaping with had apparantly leaped forward, tired of evading, and buried his fist into the severel folds of fat. The slovenly creature's eyes were bugged out, a look of utter surprise etched across her face. The Gazimon fell the the floor gracefully. The Queen didnt. She crashed down, making an impact the actually dented the stone. I was surprised she didnt roll down the hall...  
  
"Sorry.." Gazimon said shortly, then hurried over towards me "What are you doing? Open the door!"  
  
I hastily pressed on the blue pad that had shown itself. The bridge lowered..It was going painfully slow, and I heard marching footsteps coming down the hall...Gazimon looked worried.  
  
"Thatll be the Elite Guard.."  
  
"What are they?"  
  
"What do they sound like?" He said shortly  
  
"Uh..How strong..Are they?"  
  
"Pretty tough..."  
  
"Have you ever fought them?"  
  
"Why would I do that? Im the captain.." That explained a few things. Gazimon looked at the drawbridge and back down the hall. A line of spears had made itself visible..."This is no good..We'll have to jump for it!"  
  
"Uh...Jump?"  
  
"Yeah..You can jump, right? Nothing big, just 30 feet..."  
  
"Thirty feet?? Just...Hop thirty feet, from a standing position?"  
  
"Yeah..We dont have time for a run at it.."  
  
"What do you think I am, a rabbit?" He gave me such a look... "Er..Sorry. But I cant make that!"  
  
He made a snap decision. He grabbed me and put me over his shoulders, running with great speed toward the slowly opening bridge. He dased to the end of it, and I felt him tense up...Then I was flying. I looked down to see a moat flying below me...Gazimon seemed to be enjoying this little leap of faith.His eyes were closed and the wind was going through his fur. Tha landing wasnt nearly as graceful as the flight. I threw him off balance, sadly, and he tripped, sending me flying and him tumbling to the ground. A thought went threw my head ~Tuck and roll!~ It was that instinct that stopped me from snapping my neck as I crashed to the ground on my head. I rolled, and my arms and legs flopped to the ground, as I slowly drug to a painful stop. I hoped I hadnt broken anything in my backpack..I had a feeling I would need every little thing in it sooner or later. I rolled over painfully. Gazimon was allready up, looking as if nothing had happened.  
  
"So.." He said cooly "Where to now?"  
  
"Your coming with me?"  
  
"I cant very well go back there now, can I?"  
  
I felt bad..I had lost him home, and I knew it. "Im..Im sorry..."  
  
He shrugged nonchalantly "Dont worry about it...It was boring there anyway. So anyway..You never told me your name" He offered his paw, both to get me up and to sake it.  
  
"Call me Gradius...I guess..." I said...  
  
"Nice to meet you Gradius, Im Tobu..Shall we get going? The Elite Guard will be slow because of theyr armor, but better safe then sorry"  
  
I worldlessly nodded and set off..I didnt know where I was or where I was going, but staying around wouldnt help. I could only hope to get lucky and find some trace of the kidnapper...My only real plan was to look out for anything suspicious. Hopefully, I could either find some kind of trail, or a town that I could ask around in...We were entering a forest now...  
  
"Be careful..This forest is haunted" Tobu said quietly  
  
"Of course.." was my equally quiet reply ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Im finally on my way. After a rough start, I seem to be having some better luck finally...With my new companion, I have to brave this treacherous forest, while at the same time looking for clues. This might be rough, but no one said this would be easy...  
  
Chapter 6: Blazing A Trail 


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6: Blazing A Trail  
  
Me and Tobu carefully made our way through the forest...We must have walked a good half a mile with nothing happenening and no signs of Rena or her mysterious capture. I was starting to wonder if we would ever get out of the desolate, forsaken land...It was a forest in the loosest sense of the word. Forest implies life and growth...This place had neither. It was full of dead twsiting trees that were oozing something unmistakably green and putrid smelling. Every now and then we would stumble on some qicksand or a bit of mucky, slimy water.. But it was so..So..Quiet. There was no sound at all...Not even any bugs buzzing around, no birds, no twigs snapping from animals..Just utter quiet and an overwhelming feeling of death and oblivion, for it was as cold as it was lifeless...It wasnt normal cold...It was like the air was simply full of fear. All the tiny hairs on my body stood up. I wondered how such a beautiful world could have spawned such a terrible place..Wasnt the digital world supposed to be a beautiful haven, ripe with green growing things and teeming with life? My thoughts that nothing was in the forest but us was quickly shattered as a net scooped us both up into the treetops. I heard Tobu mutter a slight curse as we were jumbled together on our way up. I looked at him fearfully, but what emotion had spawned his outburst was gone..He was probably trying to put on a brave face for me...  
  
"Whats going on?" I asked simply, voice quivering slightly  
  
"A net, Gradius..Nothing to worry about..." He calmly replied, then sighed "What we have to worry about is what set the net and how often it checks its traps...Can you move your sword arm?"  
  
I tried. By some miracle, my right arm was threaded neatly through a hole in the net. I could move it fairly well. "Yeah.."  
  
"Good. Help me cut this thing up a bit..Only cut the ones I point out or we'll get tangled up. Got me?"  
  
I nodded  
  
"Good..And whatever you do, DONT stop cutting, no matter what you see or hear..."  
  
He quickly looked at the severel strands of crude rope that formed the net, and put a small claw mark on half a dozen of them. He started gnawing on one of them. I joined in and sawed at one of them with my sword while holding it still with my other arm. I started to hear things...Quiet though they were, the utter silence up till then made them sound very loud. My guts tied themselves in a knot and I stopped ever so breifly. I received a light kick to the skull from Tobu, who muttered through a mouthful of rope something I couldnt make out. I could guess he was telling me to keep cutting, so I mustered myself and ignored the surroundings, cutting feverishly at what held me. I let out a breath as one of the strands snapped, and heard another go too. I started on another, but suddenly the cold went to startling new lows. It got so bad that couldnt control my shivering and almost cut my hand off. I had too look around. I deeply regretted it when I did.  
  
The clearing was swarming with ghosts. These werent Bakimon..They looked like ghosts of actual digimon...  
  
"T-Tobu!!"  
  
"I know, Gradius! Now, stay strong and keep cutting...They always wait a while to feed on your fear, so we have a while before they really attack..."  
  
I heard two ropes snap and started again to hack away at mine. My panic lent me strength, and I severed one with a deft upward slice. The rope suspending us from a tree gave a creak and we lowered startlingly. Tobu didnt miss a beat before chewing away at another, but I [aniced and grabbed onto whatever rope I could grab. I cursed loudly as I dropped my sword. As if that werent bad enough, the digi-ghosts were tightening theyr circle around us..One raised a spectral claw and struck at me. I felt sheer coldness rip across my face, the blood actually freezing for a moment in the shallow wounds before melting through and coursing down my face. It stung! Luckily, that one seemed the only one eager to get me...I reached down to get hold of my sword. Another crack sound and I inched a foot closer..I just needed a little bit more! I pried open the cross section of the rope and managed to slide most of my shoulder in. Yeah! I got hold of my blade and severed the last marked rope. We tumbled to the ground...  
  
Tobu hit the ground running. Not running, but fighting. he closed his eyes and muttered something, his claw charging with electricity. I was much less graceful. I had to worry about not landing on my sword, so I twisted in mid air and thumped hard on my back. Once more, the sword flew from my grasp, this time enbedding itself in a tree. I scrambled up and ran for it, hearing a large zapping sound behind me and a few ghostly moans. I turned around to see Tobu absorbing the creatured data..It somehow sickened me...I looked back toward my sword and found it guarded by a nasty looking Wizardmon ghost with very torn up clothing and a mask over one half of its face. It raised its rod to strike, and I rolled backwards just in time to see it crash down in front of me. It wordleslly floated closer toward me....Out of desperation, I looked around, seeing my pack laying on the ground. I jumped for it, and opened it up, intent on retrieving my wooden one. I foudn something much better...A shotgun. I looked at it like it was a bag of gold, and picked it up, whirling around. I pumped it once, loading up the barrels. The ghost looked at it strangely, not knowing what it was. I enlightened him...  
  
I pulled the trigger as fast as my frozen fingers would let me. A resounding BANG shattered the quiet of the forest and the ghastly wizard was no more. It raised its arms futiley to block, but was torn to bits of data by the rain of pellets...The data swirled around for a while before settling in my backpack. I wasnt sure where it was goingin THERE, but I didnt really care..I whirled around, loading up again, to find every ghost that was left, and Tobu, staring at me. Tobus mouth was slightly agape.  
  
"What..Is that?" He said, swallowing  
  
For once I felt in control "This...Is our salvation." I whirled my aim at the remainging ghosts. They werent willing to tangle with the business end of a shotgun, however, and departed. Some shaking claws, some shaking tentacles, but all vowing revenge...I took a deep breath and settled down, swatting at the saftey latch twice before I heard the click. Tobu was still staring at me.  
  
"What?"  
  
"...Did that little stick cause that huge bang??"  
  
"Yeah...But this isnt a normal stick...This is a human invention...Its called a "Gun" Theyr really terrible things, but I had no other choice..."  
  
"Well..That should make things easier.."  
  
"I uh..Really cant use it all the time...Limited ammo.."  
  
"What do you mean?"  
  
"Well, it fired by causing an explosion inside a chamber, which expels the "bullet"..I only have so many bullets, so I should use them wisely"  
  
"...Ok, you lost me at "Bullet"..."  
  
"I cant use it all the time. I have to save it for emergencys"  
  
"Allright...Lets get going though. Our feet we can and should use any time..."  
  
"Good point..."  
  
I yanked my sword out of the dead tree and cleaned it off quickly. I fell into step besides Tobu and we marched for a while. The forest didnt seem to get any better...In fact, it got worse. Tobu was looking more and more worried as we trekked. I would find out why too soon. We had been walking for a looong time, whens uddenly he through up his arms in annoyance and kicked a tree.  
  
"Whats wrong?" I asked nervously  
  
"We're lost"  
  
"Well, we'll just go the same direction until we get out..."  
  
"No..We're LOST. The ghosts are very treacherous, you see....They can make us wander in circles, even if we go perfectly straight..."  
  
"So what do we do?"  
  
"We have to beat the boss ghost"  
  
"I dont like the sound of that.."  
  
"Dont worry..If worst comes to worst, you can use that gun thing on 'er..We dont have to delete her, just a knock out will work..."  
  
"How do we find her?"  
  
"Like this...HEEEEEEEEEY! GET OUT HERE YOU BLOATED BAG OF ECTOPLASM!!!"  
  
"Subtle"  
  
"Thanks...Now get ready.." He readied himself as a lot of ruckus came toward us...  
  
I took out my sword, determined to not be caught off guard again. I heard a lot of cliche ghost noises, hooting, booing, various evil laughs...And the ground was shaking. Then a really really FAT ghost barralled out into the clearing, tailed by a few hundred tiny ones. It was so fat I wondered how it could possibly float like that. It had no discernable body, just a massive blob with tiny black eyes and a large toothy grin. There was slobber dribbling out. Green drool. Green drool was never a good sign.  
  
"First we have to take out the small ones so they dont jump in, then we make the fat lady sing! Now go!!"  
  
He disappeared ion a blur of movement, jumping around in the fray so fast that I could hardly see him. I took a more solid approach. I stood my ground and attacked anything that came into my range, advancing slowly. If I got a little better at handling such a large sword, maybe I would go Tobus way, but now that wasnt going to happen. I dont know how many ghosts were wiped out, or how many shining flows of data made theyr way mysteriously to my backpack, but we must have been fighting for a solid hour before we made much of any headway. Tobu let loose one last beam of electricity and I executed a fancy whirling slash, making it just us and the leader. I expected it to talk me to death first, but instead the thing sprung into the attack. It tackled me. It felt like I was plunged into a pool of freezing cold jello. Except there was nothing. Nothing at all. No light, no sound, no heat. Just infinite darkness. It was like all the dread and negativity of the forest condensed into one point. And that point was me. I curled up and started to shiver and felt very hopeless. Then a furry paw grabbed my shoulder and started to drag me out! I burst out of the coldness into the "warmth" of the forest. Tobu fell over pulling me out, and I tumbled none to gracefully to the ground also. The ghost was on the ground writhing, a large hole torn in her. SHe was a ghost, so there really wasnt much to see, it was just like someone had forgotten to draw some of it in.  
  
"FInsih it.." Tobu said tiredly "Im too tired too..."  
  
"Allright.." Feeling a bit hurt in the pride, I lifted my sword and stumbled to her "Sorry" I said sinmply, and finished the gastly digimon with a deft swoop of the blade. I cut it clean in half, and the energy made its way to Tobu, some of it going into my backpack too.  
  
Tobu got up, instantly ready "Shall we go?" he said, as if he hadnt an instant ago been facedown on the ground. I put my sword up warily and followed him. After a good hour of walking, we finally broke out of the forest into a plain. The thing that made this plain stand out was the copious amounts of ash all over.  
  
Tobu spoke up "This is the Ashen Fieild. The volcano on the other side of it coats t constantly with ash and soot. life is hard here, but if you look close enough youll find little bits.."  
  
"Volcano?"  
  
"Dont worry, we dont have to go there..We just go north for a bit then cut east. We should end up in a town" He said, limping out into the feild  
  
"Are you sure your ok?"  
  
"Yeah, Im fine..Dont worry. By the way, if your feeling useless dont. You hurt her very badly while you were in there"  
  
"What do you mean? I didnt do anything  
  
"Really? I figured you were using some sort of advanced magic..It seemed like it was blowing up from the inside while I fought it..."  
  
"Nope..I did absolutly nothing"  
  
He shrugged "Well, you musta done something..And whatever it was, she didnt like it."  
  
I was too tired to argue my point or wonder anything..All i could do was trudge through the feild of fine grey dust and hope nothing attacked. Hopefully, I would strengthen or something, becuase I felt very weak at the time..I had barely done any fighting and even less good fighting..I figured I was just adjusting or something, since I knew I was stronger then this...But I would worry about that later. Tobu seemed to be doing a fine job kicking anything we met to the curb...I would just help whenever I could and handle the nice shiny gun when it was needed.  
  
~~~~~~~~~  
  
We finally make it too the village Tobu was speaking of to find it entirely occupied by virus digimon!! Tobu doesnt seem in the least bit disturbed by this, and we mingle with them, asking questions, resting up and such. But then something funny happens, and in the aftermath I get my first clue as to Rena's whereabouts and maybe a shocking revelation or two.  
  
Chapter 7: The Darkness In The Light 


	7. Chapter 7

Too many backed up reviews to feedback....Lets skip straight to the good stuff

(Sorry I disappeared..My flow went down to a trickle)

Chapter 7: The Darkness in the Light

Tobu and I..walked...and walked...and walked....and walked...and walked... and walked... and walked....and walked...and walked....and walked...and walked... and walked... and walked....and walked...and walked....and walked...and walked... and walked... and walked....and walked...and walked....and walked...and walked... and walked... and walked....and walked...and walked....and walked...and walked... and ate...and walked... and walked....and walked...and walked....and walked...and walked... and walked... and walked....and walked...and walked....and walked...and walked... and walked... and walked....and walked...and swam.....and walked....and walked...and walked... and walked... and walked....and walked...and walked....and walked...and walked... and walked... and walked....and walked...and walked....and walked...obey me....and walked... and walked... and walked.... As you can see there was much walking being done, and not a lot of getting anywhere. At one point I went to sleep and continued walking out of sheer habit (Tobu probably lied about that one, but I dont care) Anyway, we finally came to an arch leading into town. It was too dark to read what it said, but it was probably the name of said town...We slumped wearily into the nearest inn, payed for our room, and hit the sack.

I woke up after what seemed like only moments of good dark sleep to find Tobu sitting on my chest and pawing at me with his big claws to get me up. I wasnt fully awake, so it didn't really register that the previous escapade wasnt a dream, and Tobu looked kinda cute, really...() So I did something kinda goofy and wrapped my arms around him in a bearhug. Oddly enough he didn't kill me...He didn't really seem to mind at all, and even wrapped one arm around in an uneasy sort of embrace. Then he gave me a smile as uneasy as the hug

"uhh..You ok? Is the stress finally gettin' to you?" he said

"Huh?" I muttered, and finally I shook back into reality...I was of the mind to let go quickly, but it really felt nice and reassuring to have something furry to hold. "No...Well, maybe a little. Do you mind?"

He smiles a bit more strongly and patted me on the back "Hey, its alright. I dont mind. Take your time..."

We sorta sat there awkwardly on the bed for a while, him halfstanding in my lap, me sitting there holding him tightly. I think a few tears escaped, but I wasnt really sure; regardless, eventually the embrace ended and he patted me strongly on the back. I felt very lucky to have someone strong to keep me that way, and the thought made me smile for the first time in days.

"Cmon. Time to go..." he said softly, bidding me to rise as he hopped off the bed and headed for the door.

I rose a bit slowly to follow after him, down the stairs and out into the lobby to check out. I scratched my ear lazily and peeked into the lounge to see if the inn had a free breakfast....The sight that greeted me made a little squeak noise pop out of me, and my feet imediatly moved to run away. Tobu grabbed onto my shirt and stopped me, and I flipped out at him a bit..

"VIRUSES! Dont you see them all!?" 

Tobu chuckled knowingly "Uh. Yeah. Thats why it's called VIRUS village?"

"but wont they..you know...try to eat us or something?"

"Ugn...Not all viruses are bad, ya know. Not all vaccines are good either."

"Name one good virus "

"Uhhh...Gradius?.....IM a virus type...."

You could hear my brain go click "Ohhhhh...() Right..My bad"

"Virus, Vaccine, Data... It just describes the type of power you have. How you use it is what really determines who you are.."

"...So what am I?"

"You're foreign material, bub. No doubt your made of data now and probably have a classification, but I couldnt tell it just by lookin' at you. Ey, I'm gonna go pay for breakfast..Get whatcha want"

He turned and walked off, leaving me with that thought. I wandered off and looked at the breakfast available...There was lots of pretty good stuff there so I dug in. Half way through an ommelette, a voice sounded that made me spray it a good five feet..Luckily no one was hit with my flying breakfast.

"Hey bro...Should you really be eating at a time like this?"

I whirled around to see none other than my brother "How did you get here??"

"I didn't. Actually, I just hacked the information of you I found, and I'm making you beleive you see and hear me. Cool, huh?"

"Isnt that kinda..dangerous???"

"Yup!"

I slapped my forehead "Uhh..Right...So uh...what did you risk deleting me to say?"

"I came to give you a little help. A power boost, if you will"

"You can do that!? GREAT!!! Make me as strong as umm..A mega!"

"No can do..Sorry. I can only work with the data already in you. Basically, I can maximize your current potential, and give you further potential to grow by changing the variables in your coding."

"...huh?"

" You'll level up, like in a video game..." 

"Alright!!! Do it!"

He made some odd motions, as if typing on the air. Suddenly I felt a rush of power hit me like an avalanche!! I had gone from 98 pound weakling to olympic style power, and boy was it a plus.

"Thanks man.."

"No problem. Ill be monitering you and doing what I can. Oh, about that toy sword of yours...its doing something weird. Ill tell you if I figure anything out "

And that was all I got. At that moment he faded from sight, leaving me completely clueless as to what was up with my sword. I just shrugged and sat down, not feeling quite like eating at the moment. I just sat there until Tobu came back. We stayed in that town for a while, trying to get some clue as to our next step and get rested...We got absolutely nothing. So on the third day there we decided to try another town, setting off on the seemingly endless roads of the digital world again. Walking down that dusty road, Tobu suddenly perked up as if he heard something, his ears moving a bit.

"Whats up?" I asked, getting on my guard, half hoping for a fight to show off, and half hoping not

"I heard something...To the left" came his hushed reply

His ears looked like little satalites, zeroing in on the source of the sound. He looked at me and gestured to a giant rock, tilting his head and making a punching motion. I nodded and quietly pulled my sword, the two of us creeping toward the boulder, he going around it to the left and me going around to the right. I walked around until I was behind it, to find Tobu not there yet...I went on around, hoping to find him, but suddenly I to heard something...A small click...

I turned toward it just in time to see a set of reddish tendrils flying at me with incredible speed. I brought my sword of to defend the attack, grimacing as they wrapped around the blade of it. I pulled as hard as I could to free my sword, and with a jerk, finally managing, sending my attacker off balance. I jumped out of the way as he/she/it rolled down the boulder, jumping out of the way as he/she/it landed with a thud on the ground. I jumped to attack, but the mysterious creature pushed itself away with its tendrils and my blade cut into earth. I pulled it out just in time to defend against the tentacles flying at me once more, one two three blows I knocked aside before a fourth caught me in the stomach, sneding me flying back.

I rolled to my feet, seeing the attacker rush towards me again...A strange plantlike creature with leaves on its head...A Palmon. The Palmon rushed forward, me hurrying to meet her, sword drawn and glinting in the sunlight... She struck with a tendril and I attacked with my shining blade...

It seemed to go in slow motion, the tendril whipping at me as I raised my blade to counter it, the speed only picking up when the cold steel of it cut through the attacking vine, and continuing on, catching her squarely across the chest. I stumbled past her as she fell to the ground, quickly whirling around the face her. She was down, but I wasn't sure if she was going to get back up.

"Why dont you pick on someone your own size?" came a voice from behind, and I turned to face it, finding myself staring into the cold eyes of a Flamedramon 

"Picking?! She attacked me! And my friend! Where is Tobu, anyway?"

"Oh, you mean that rabbit? Hes over there, tied up in her vines...What are you doing here, anyway?"

"Im looking for a Renamon that was capture recently. Do you know anything?"

Before the flamedramon could answer, the Palmon popped up behind me, cheerfully shouting "Yeah!! Thats what we're investigating how did you know?"

From the way the flamedramon slapped his forehead, he had no intention of me finding anything out. It was too late though... "Because I saw her abducted. She was taken from my home"

The flamedramon gave me a strange look "Why was she at your home?"

"....Its complicated. Look, do you know where she might be or not? I want to help her!"

He sighed "Its not your business. Go home"

I growled angrily, advancing on him with my sword drawn "It is my business! If I have to force information out of you I will!"

He laughed at me..It made me sooo mad "Do you really think you stand a chance? Come on then.."

He took a fighting stance, readying for my attack, and I didn't dissapoint at all. I rushed him, swinging my blade furiously hoping to score a hit on the speed demon of a digi. He easily evaded every slash I made, continuing to taunt me and further fuel my anger. I started swingint with greater fury and speed, my blade shining in the air as it swept around, never cutting anything but air.

"You'll never hit me like THAT! Focus, human! A blind rage will only get you deleted"

He started to retaliate now, and I was forced onto the defensive, jumping around, deflecting his deadly claws as best I could. One or two times I felt them rip through my clothing, singing it instantly with their heat. Finally he caught me right in the chest with the blunt of his claws, sending me stumbling back. I started to stand up to find his claws at my throat.

"Focus, human! Fight with your brain, not your anger!" 

I knocked his claws away and got up, taking my stance..He was right. I had to THINK or this guy was gonna rip me apart. Thats when I heard it...The rush of power, flames igniting, and a terrifying phrase that bespoke my end very quickly.

"Fire Rocket!!!"

He was going to kill me with that...His attacks until now had just been physical, but if he turned up the heat and hit me with that, I was done for. I could only watch as he flew toward me, his claws alight with flames..

But wait...It cant end this way!! I thought to myself I wont let it!! People are counting on me!

I pulled my sword up to defend the blow, focusing everything I had on not being torn apart by his flaring claws. It was strange...I could see energy flowing from me into the sword I was holding, causing it to glow with power. It must have been my brothers reprogramming that did it. Flamedramon closed in swiftly, striking at my guard with ferocious power, but it held!! My power fought against his, extinguishing the flames on his claws...He gave me a look of pure shock as I reared my blade back again, striking him down with the energy still within it. Energy exploded through him, his entire body glowing white for a moment as he flew back, helped along by tiny pockets of explosions on his body, and landing with a dull thud on the path. I stood there, panting raggedly due to the intense exertion of my defense and counterattack. Slowly the flamedramon got up, eyeing me carefully. His armor was torn up badly, chipping in places and generally looking beat up. His hand moved upward as I started to attack.

"Enough. You have proven yourself in my eyes...Our sources indicate that Renamon is somewhere to the east. Someone spotted her at a town that way" 

I was a bit..put out "But..Why the test?! Why didnt you just tell me in the first place?"

He eyes me warily "I sensed something...There is a darkness in the light around you, and I wanted to make sure we were on the same side. But an attack like that could only have come from goodness..."

I didnt know what he was talking about. I didnt really care. "Thank you...Ill grab Tobu and be on my way."

"Wait! Human...I will allow you to use my power. Here, take this" He concentrated on his gauntlets, seeming to pull a flame from them. The flame concentrated into an orb, and he tossed it to me. Looking at it, I could see coding scrolling about within and light refracting through, tinting the ground red.

"What..Is this?"

"It is the coding of my gauntlets. If you have need of my power, concentrate on them and it will come to you...You will need to install it first, however. Since you got this far, I will assume you know how. Palmon, come"

I ran forward, trying to stop them, but they were engulfed in a massive flare of fire. I shielded m eyes at the amazing flash, looking up and seeing them still through my dazzled eyes. When they cleared, the two mystery digimon were gone, leaving me with an orb and a lot of questions...But I didnt care just then! I knew where Rena was, and I was going to find her if it took everything I had. I found and untied Tobu, turning from the road and heading east.

"Impressive fight, by the way...I didnt think you had it in you" he said as we trekked along

"Heh..Glad you think so. You might have to carry me to the next village, for all it took out of me"

Before I could tell him I was only joking, he had scooped me up, and indeed seemed intent on carrying me all the way to the town in the east. I just laughed and nodded my appreciation, him smilling back with a glint in his eye. On the way, I heard a little voice in my head..My brother...He told me that he had installed the data from Flamedramon, and it was ready for use whenever I needed it.

As we trek along this trail of destiny, our moralle high after the recent victory, something starts to go wrong, and not in the usual way...Maybe its the darkness in my light, but I suddenly dont feel so good...And why is Tobu giving me that look? Stupid little rabbit...I dont need him! He seems to think the same way about me....Its a battle between friends, with the most cliched ending you could hope for! Root for whoever you want, but enjoy the fireworks...

Chapter 8: Agression


End file.
